Newsletter 14 – 10 September 2025

Dear parents and caregivers,

As you are aware, our Principal Melissa Vranjes, is away until the end of Term Three, taking some well-deserved Long Service Leave. Whilst on leave, Miss Vranjes will undertake a spiritual pilgrimage and visit important religious sites in Portugal, including Fatima, known as the spiritual heart of Portugal. This is the place where three young shepherd’s children were said to have seen an apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who appeared ‘brighter than the sun’. I have no doubt that Miss Vranjes will be personally transformed by her experiences and will return to our community with a deepened faith, a sense of peace and hopefully, a renewed vigour for the challenges of her role as school principal. 

Father’s Day

A huge thank you to our amazing P&F on organising another successful Father’s Day Stall last Thursday. Each class spent time browsing the gifts available to purchase and every child was able to take home something special to give to their dad on Sunday. I hope all fathers and father figures in our community were able to spend some time being spoilt by their loved ones on Sunday. 

 On Friday 5th September, Mrs Trabucchi, Mrs Mo and our talented Year One students led our community at the Father’s Day Mass. I was so impressed by how beautifully the students led our celebration, from carrying the prayer focus items down the aisle, to reading the Liturgy of the Word and singing beautifully during the hymns. Thank you to our teachers for their hard work in preparing the students and to our families, fathers and father figures for attending the mass. It was a lovely and reverent way to end Week 7 of term. 

Kindy and Pre-Primary Junior Sports Carnival

Last Thursday, our Pre-Primary and Kindy students enjoyed a wonderful afternoon of fun and friendly competition at the Junior Sports Carnival, held at James Miller Oval in glorious weather conditions. The children participated enthusiastically in a variety of events including running races, egg and spoon races, Rob the Nest, sack races, and the always-popular teddy bear races. It was heartwarming to see their smiles and excitement throughout the afternoon.

Thank you to Mrs Matthews, Mrs Sanchez and Mrs O’Neill for their work with the Kindys, and to Mrs Collazos and Miss Johnson for their help with the Pre-Primarys. Thank you to Mrs Kucan and Miss Beattie for their help on the day.

A big thank you to Mr Cooper for organising such a fantastic event.

 P & F Movie Night – Friday 12 September

This coming Friday night is our annual Movie Night, organised and hosted by our P&F. Sausage Sizzle starts at 5pm, and the movies will commence at 5:30pm. Parents must collect their children from the door.  

Year 6 Celebration of the Sacrament of Confirmation – Sunday 14th September, 9am @ SPX Church 

This Sunday 14th September marks a very important milestone in the faith life of our Year Six students, as they come together at St Pius X Church to celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation. This is the third of the Sacraments of Initiation in the Catholic church and signifies the child’s deepening commitment to Christ and importantly, their reception of the Holy Spirit, which will strengthen them on their continuing faith journey. We keep our students, their families and Sponsors in our prayers in the lead-up to Sunday and know that they will continue to be blessed by the Holy Spirit and Jesus as they become sealed members of our church.  

Safety in the Kiss-n-Drop area 

In recent weeks, I have observed some concerning actions by some of the parents who use the Kiss-n-Drop area directly adjacent to the basketball courts on Cloister Avenue.  

Once again, parents are reminded to adhere to the following points, to keep our students and staff safe and ensure the smooth flow of traffic in the area each day: 

Where possible, walk or ride to school, or park near the James Miller Reserve precinct and walk to collect your children.  

• Be patient and respectful! Staff on duty are doing their best to keep your children safe and move traffic on in a calm and safe manner!  

• Where possible, try to arrive between 3.10-3.15pm, to minimise heavy traffic movement in the immediate area prior to this time. 

• If the Kiss-n-Drop bays are full, parents are asked to continue down Cloister Avenue, turn left onto Ley Street, then make a left past the church onto Paterson Street, onto Mount Henry Road and loop back. This will allow time for the movement of those cars already in the bays and the flow of traffic in the area to continue. 

• Parents are NOT to drive onto the red bricks at the western end of the Kiss-n-Drop bays (near the round-a-bout), as this is a serious safety hazard for pedestrians and may result in fines from the Rangers. If they bays are full, make a loop and try again. Cars that are seen driving onto the red bricks will be reported to the Ranger.  

• Follow all normal road rules that apply in school zones (40km/h limit) and in areas where pedestrians and children are common.  

Duty of Care – Drop Off and Pick Up  

Parents are reminded that children should not be dropped off before 8.30am and must be collected by 3.20pm each day. If you are regularly dropping off or unable to collect your child/ren by this time, you are asked to organise Before/After School care at Tall Trees OSHC or Conan Road OSHC. Our staff already do a lot in their own time and do not have duty of care for your children outside of these times. Your understanding in this matter is appreciated.  

In closing… 

During the recent Australian Catholic Education Conference in Cairns, I had the privilege of attending an array of wonderful presentations, including the closing keynote by Dr Simon Breakspear, titled, “What Matters NOW – Leading with Hope in an Age of Acceleration”.   

Dr Breakspear highlighted the mental, human and cultural shifts that educators and parents now face due to the onslaught of an enormously advancing technological society.   

To combat these shifts, he challenged leaders in education to ‘prune back’ and focus on three things:  

1. Creating school communities as Sanctuaries of Human Thinking – to combat the numbing effects of an increased reliance on AI and a reduction in critical thinking.  
2. Catholic schools must strive to be Havens of Human Belonging – using the ancient rituals of community and friendship to provide human connectedness in an era of detachment. 
3. Catholic schools must stand as Anchors of Human Authenticity – schools must provide a wide range of authentic, hands-on experiences such as music, and access to art and sport and culture, for students who now experience more of their life through handheld devices.  

 We are blessed to belong to a vibrant community like that at St Pius X School, where our students have access to an enriching, Christ-centred and child-focused educational experience, led-in-hope by passionate and dedicated staff. I extend my thanks to our families for supporting the work of our teachers and continuing to build strong partnerships between school and home.  

Have a peaceful week! 

Mrs Gregory
Acting Principal

This term, our Year Ones have been on a wonderful learning journey through an integrated unit all about Australia. The children have been exploring big ideas across different learning areas, and it has been exciting to see how their knowledge and skills are growing and connecting together.

In English, we have been developing our writing skills by creating information reports about Australian animals. The students have enjoyed researching and learning fascinating facts about creatures such as kangaroos, koalas, platypuses, and dingos. They are learning to structure their reports with headings, subheadings and interesting details, and are very keen to publish their work.

In HASS, we have been learning to identify and describe the different types of places and spaces in our country. The children have discovered the difference between natural features (like rivers, mountains and beaches), constructed features (such as bridges, roads and buildings), and managed features (including farms and national parks). We have enjoyed discussing how these features make Australia unique and special.

In Design and Technology, we stepped into the world of food production by following the journey of bread—taking inspiration from the classic story The Little Red Hen. The students traced the process from planting wheat, harvesting, milling and baking. They were amazed to see just how much work goes into producing a simple loaf of bread that we enjoy every day.

It has been a joy to see the students making connections between their learning areas and developing a deeper appreciation of our beautiful country and the resources it provides. We are so proud of the curiosity, effort and enthusiasm they have shown throughout this unit!

Five Year 4 girls recently showed incredible initiative and generosity by setting up a Loom Band stall at their brothers’ Auskick Presentation. With a total of 42 handmade Loom bands on offer, the girls raised an impressive $67.10, which they have chosen to donate to Project Compassion and Centrecare charities. Their thoughtful contribution and the time they dedicated to this project are truly commendable. Congratulations to these young changemakers for their kindness, creativity, and community spirit!

🎾 Marshall’s Tennis Academy – Term 4 Lessons 🎾
We’re excited to announce that Marshall’s Tennis Academy will be offering tennis lessons for Year 3–6 students on Thursday afternoons during Term 4.

• Start Date: Week 2 – Thursday, 23 October
• Duration: 8 weeks
• Time: 3:15pm – 4:00pm
• Who: Years 3 – 6
• Where: School Courts

This is a fantastic opportunity for students to develop their tennis skills in a fun and supportive environment. For more details on registration please click on this link.